Baffle



June 17, 1930. w. F. RICHARDS 1,764,983

BAFFLE Filed Dec. '7, 1928 INVENTOR hl/LL/AM F RICHARDS ATTORNEYS Patented June 17, 1936 v UNITED STATES PATENT oar ice wr'rmrur r. nrcrmnns, ormson, HIGEIGAN, nssreuoa 'ro rm: mom'ron'a rnonucrs comrm, or 01110, .A coarom'rron or care Application ma December 7, 1928. Serial No. 524,500."

This invention -relatestoliquid driers such as are used for drying various food products, including milk and its component parts, such als; 011111111, alkaline, caseinates, milk sugar and t e 6 Driers of this'type usually include a cylindrical drying chamber into which the mateheated air at substantially the center the casingl v and other means for exhausting'or.

een

with' awing the air therefrom. It has found that a very practical way'to introduce the air into these driers is. to provide them with a, central flue in the floor, opening upward toward the material as it ,is being sprayed into the upper .part of the casing; To prevent the passage of the products down through the flue a suitable bafile is providedand it has been found that these baflles collect I so deposits of the dried material. Since the heated air is passing around the baflie such materials are scorched or burned and mingle with the batch and contaminate it. Various types of baflies. have been used to overcome this difliculty, with more or less success, but

the present baffle is designed to avoid the deposit upon it of material by forming the aflle of a plurality of vanes or fins which direct the'incoming heated air in such a way 0 that it sweeps or wipes the exposed surfaces of the'baflle and clears off any possible collection of material thereon.

The invention is clearly set forth in the Fig. 4; Fig. 6 is a section upon the line 6-6 of Fig. 2; and Fig. 7'is a section upon the line 77 of Fig. 2 showing the spaced shingle arrangement of the upper fins.

In the embodiment set forth in the drawings, 1 represents the floor or base on which ment of part of the arrangement shown-inis mounted the drier generall indicated at 2. Through the floor of the rierextends a suitable flue 3-connected to a heated air supin an suitable manner, such as by a motor I 6, an carrying a su plemental flue memberrial is sprayed, wlth means for suppl mg 7 as well as the ra 1al arms 8 for scra rs not shown.- At the upper end of the s aft near the dlscharge mouth of the flue 7 is located the baflle structure forming the pres-'1 ent invention. It comprises half tube ortions 9 each of which carries a plurality oftr angular shaped vanes or blades 10. Each of these blades is provided with an inner securing flange 11 riveted or otherwise secured as by soldering, brazing, or the like, to the half tube in such a way that the triangular blades extend vertically and generally form an inverted cone-shaped baflle. Each of these blades at its upper edge has a laterally extending triangular shaped fin 12, the fins of the several vanes overlapping in shingle-like manner andforming the base of the cone. Each .of these fins is'provided with a lug 13 extending from the edge thereof for securement to the upper face of the next adjacent fin. A rivet 14 servesito hold these parts together. The fins overlap, as stated, and they are spaced from each other between the lugs .13 and thecentral axis so as to provide radially and laterally extending discharge openings or. slots 15 which direct the'heated air passing up between each pair of adjacent blades 10 laterally over the upper face of the adjacent blades, so that the; sweep of the air current-across the upper surfaces wipes olf and'blows away any possible deposit of material upon the top of the bafile. In this way very little, if any, material is scorched or burned. If desired,.the end of the half pertions 9 may be protected by a small steep cover cone or shield 16 secured in lace in any suitable manner and having at 1ts apex an opening 16.

he shaft- 5 has connection with the flue 7 as by radially extending arms 5". The lower extremity of thetube formed by the hplf portions 9 is above the upper extremity o the shaft 5, so that heated air may) enter 90 the tube. The baflie is secured with the flue 7 for, rotation therewith by a number of arms 10 secured with adjacent blades 10.

.In operation the heated air rises through the flue 7, passes up between the blades 10 and is ro ected laterally by the fins over the sur ace of the adjacent fins into the dry ing chamber. The movement of the air .is more or less tangential with some tendency to produce a spiral whirl, as will be readily apparent,

Having described mg invention, l'clalmz 1. A baflle for the uesof spray driers, comprising a series of verticallg disposed horizontally spaced blades, and n by said blades and arranged in overlapping or shingle-like spaced relation, for prevent.

ing the collection of material upon the top oil the bafile. Y J

2. A baflle of the form described in claim 1, wherein said blades radiate from a central axis and widen upwardly to present a generally cone-shaped bafile, and said fins are formed by lateral extensions of the upper edge portions of said blades all extending in the same direction around the axis and directing the air across. the faces of the fins.

3. A bafile of the class described, comprising means forming a series of upwardly ex tending channels, and a series of laterall extending fins mounted at the upper ens of said. channels in successively overlapping shingle-like vertically spaced arrangement,

to provide a series, of slots to direct the air across the upper fin surfaces.

4. A bafile of the class described, compris ing a frame constructed and arranged to form a series of upwardl extending chan nels, and bafiing means 0 structing the exit openings at the upper ends of said channels, said baiiling means being provided with means for directing currents oi air across the upper surface thereof to prevent the colleotion of material thereon.

In testimony whereoi I hereby afix signature l REG-ii s carried 

